Improved gas-meter



UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

BAHUEL CLmG, 0F SIDMOUTH STREET, GRAYS INN LANE, OOUNTY 0F MIDDLESEX, ENGLAND.

mraoveo eas-Meren.

bpoolleatioa forming aart of Letters Patent No. O48. dated September 22,1838.

ly ilprovenientaapply to that description of g-neters known by the name of dry gas- -etenfading without water or elastic membrano.

'lhe rineipls of this gas-meter in the state of to which l have now brought it eonsida in the application of heat (prodnced either bythe dame of a gaslight or by any other convenient menus) to certain pipes or ehalhersin which'the sa circulates before it` arrivfattheiuteriorof meter,whichc`auses the .etait to working very soon after it b lighted. `'.lhe'gas than heated blows through twoapertures ou two very thin glass fob@ united by a bent gls tnoe and half lied with alcohol or any other, iinid which boils at a low temperature, the remainder of their capacity forming a vacuum.` The tube which unitn the globesforms with them a balance which rests on an axis in such a manner as to be able to oscillate freely, as hereinafter described. A counter-weight projecting from the axis serves to keep the two globes in near!! a vertil position one above the other. A th rd eurrent of sgas. not heated or very siightly heated,as I all describe hcreinaiter, is own upon the upper globe, which vrenders unequal the temperature of the two globes and thus causes the alcohol contained iu the lower globe to rise into the upper, and by rendering the upper globe the heaviest causes the balance to turn over and changes the position of the two globes. The lightest is thus brought opposite the current of cold gas, while the heavied is exposed to a current of hot gas, onl this reproduces the effect already debsd, and by causing the balance to turn hack again restores the globes to their former position. Their action is thus constantly kept up at a s proportioned to the quantity of faswh i vblown upon the globes, and a ourth current ofgas the meter without in any way acting ou the globes, the object of whichis to render the meter capable of alessnring a larger quantity of gas and also to adjust its speed. The number of oscillations of the balance is registered on iiguroal dialsi by means of a train of wheel work, indicati thereon the quantity of gas that has through the meter.

Description of the paris.

In all the figures of the drawi hereunto annexed, which are the full sise a dre-light motel-,the same ietters indicate the Sme part.

The gas for putting the `meter in action requi ring to be heated, I have devised two methods to cifect this object, the principal difference of which is that in the one a special dans gives the heat required, while in the otherthe flame of one of the lights employed by the eonsurncr is used for that purpose. This dileteuce renderssoxne modification neeemry'in the construction ofthe various parts, which I shall describe hereinafter.

First inclined. Figure 1 is a horizontal plan of theilnproved gas-meter; Fig. 3, a vertical section; y

Fig. 2, au elevation with one side removed to show the interior; Fig. 4, an elevation showing the opposite side to Fig. 2; Fig. 5, ythe same view as Fig. 2, with the side of the me` ter complete; Fig. 6, a section of the heatingchamber, chimney, and thick metal pipe out Y the opposite way to Fig. 3. t

A A' represent two glass globes of the bnlance. The glass tube d. whichunites them, is bent as shown in Fig. 3.

Y is a horizontal axis of the balance.

The globes A A' are irmly attached to the t axis in the following manner: A tin plate, b, -is soldered to the axis Y. 0n this latein like manner is soldered a halfpipe o tin, B,

' tance from the axis Y, which turns in beariu soldered to the sides of the chamber N N whl contains the balance A A d Y h. This channber is made of tin and closely soldered in all parts.

U han nletipelorthegas.

V hanexitpe leading to the burners.

l is a valve for opening and shutting the eslninnientiou of the meter with the outletr I'ha chamber made of thick metal, lo which thevrip P Ware joined. v sl h-s thick metal pipe, through which the pases after having been heated in thc chamber I.

F basolid metal conductor for transmitting heat to the lower part of the chamber N, terlainating in the form of n spoon corresponding in its curve with the lower globe, but which it doa not touch.

si is a screw lor regulating tue heat of the eondudor F.

Q is a pipe for conducting thc cold gus.

I: is an aperture st which the cold gas blows upon the upper globe.`

se is au opening for the hot gas to blow on the lower globe.

T is a vertical chimney brazed to the top of the chamber I, the upper part of which chimney supports n lever, Z, at the point J. The short end of this lever is attached to the outer ce and the long end to a wire which passes thron a stalling-box, D, and suspends the valve and thcgovernor or regultating-cone C.

K is an nntechmnbcr'ior the hot gas, which blows upon the upper globe by the orifice p.

a is alsmall arm projecting from the plate h A and serving to transmit the motion of this plate tothe forked lever H. This lever moves ou au axis xed to the side of the chamber N and acts at ils lowest extremity on a catch which gives motion to thc ratchet-whccl L. A second catch falls into the small teeth of ihc wheel L and prevents anyretrograde move ment. Anmall steel spring fixed to the plate hstrikes against the stops c c, fixed to the sides of the chamber N. r This limits the distance the balance can move and keeps the globes A `A' in a` proper position for the next oscillatio `useeu` at ig. 3.

g a pipe connecting the ehnmbcxs Z v and containing a regulating-screw, i, which closes the end o the pl und serves to regulate the guantity` of gas w ich passes through it. This cnil the "neutral ipe.

l is an inletcham r connecting thepipc U with the pipes Q, P, und g.

n is an outlet-chamber through which the in its wsy to the burners.

l is s small box divided into two compnrtineuls,which communicate with each other a valve, E, in the division. closely shut by n spring. The een behind the valve is open to the meter, andto thc other compartment the pipe 0 is perah'on.

To pnt the improved meter in action,` tic valve E must be opened by priming tll lll brass stud S, which projects be the outer c1! se. This will allow theatrnp muy have accumulated in the motor or plp to escupe at the pipe O, and the burner i mn thcu be lighted, which hcatsthe chamber and the gas contained therein; but no gas enum themeter before the valve M is opened. is eli'ccted as follows: The chimney T, reesivig .the heat of the llame q, expands lever z, which draws the wire and rsisesthe valve M and the governor C. When than k suiiicient heatto work the meter, this governor closes the aperture conductin to `the borner and diminishes the llame. Bhoold the heat become less, the chimney will contradand nilow the governor to descend, enlarging the aperture at the end of the pipe Z Z and increasing the heat oi' the ila-e, thl

regulating the size of theliamqwhatever varia tion may occur in the prenons of gas which v supplies it. The valve M being opened, the

gas passes through the pip P, Q, and j. The current of gas passing up the pipelgets into the chamber I, where it is heated, and theo descende by the pipe W' till it arrives at the oriee w. There n portion cspcs and blows upon the globe A', und the resto( thegss, oilowing the direction ol' the pipe W, enter-Itho lower part of the ante-chamber K, in `which it rises, and escapes in n jet at p upon the upper globe, A. The gas blowing through the o\i-` lice w is rather hotter than that blowing through p. This is caused by the gas which at thc opening w having traversed a le.` tance since it left the chamber I This dibfb ence of temperature in these two jetsof t f slightly disposes the alcohol contained in globe A' to rise into the globe A, and counter acts the opposite cil'cct caused bythe hottt portion oi the gus contained in the chamber N N rising to the top, and thereby giving an excess of heat to the np per globe. Aa nal quantity of heat is thus given to both nel. The current of cold gas whichris in Q blows through un opening, k, upon A, to cool and partially condense the contained therein, and consequently the alcohol rise from the globe A' to A until the latter becomes the heaviest and tnrnsover the balance. The position oi' the two globes is thus reversed, und the currents of aing in the same way, again cause thomann to overturn and restore the two glob to their former position. These alternate movement continue with a speed proportioned to the quantity of gas which enters bythe opening k, p, and w. The small `stops e e prevent the balance from assuming a completely vertii This valvohkopf cairwlniel sudrsislthe tion.

sse "s b this ineens render its action A hastrisren into the p curren o gas pases y into the chamber v. This which I cell neutral gas, l the meter without blowing and its object is to render the app ible to a larger number oi' lights, regulate its actlou,whieh is effected by or diminishing the opening of the iegulatln .-screw i or by any other mee e solid conductor F trslniis a certain quantity of heat from the cha-hurl to the lower lobe, which compensat. for the heet trnnsm tied to the upper part of the chamber N, and consequently to the upperglohgA. Thenlternate movements of the halaoceane transmitted tothe registering-dials by .cans oan arm, s, which acts on the forked lever H and sets in action the catch G, which g'iv motion to the wheel L, and thence (in ii ibi the method now in common use) by a train of wheel-worktothchsnds on the dials,to register qnentityof gas that has passed through Beeosdstctho.

F 7.,-"In this system the pipes P and and t e solid conductor F are soldered to an Argnnd burner made of thick metal and containi achamber Lattslower extremit to benthic gas. y

` conductor l?, in the manner described by the Korner method. The small pipe t,provided with a quilting-screw, supplies the chamber r and the burner with gnfuruished from the cha-her N, paling through the chamber I, with which, however, it has no communica v `I have said that an Argand burncan be employed in this system, that which I have represented in the drawings, and which I an about to describe, presents improvements in this description of burner.

yyhanennular cavity, communicating with the chamber u by two branches, s. This cavity is pierced with holes atthe top in the sane way ss ordinary burners, except that the surface in which the holes are pierced forms a portion of a cone, instead of being a level surface. A rin projectsabove tbeholes from the inner edge, n order to preserve them from y dust or dirt. A ring or cap, j, covers the burner and is rather larger at iin upper end than st the top of the ring shove mentioned,

A'll he other parts for this method are similar to those ofthe former one. It will therefore be sions of the other parts; also by increasing the number of apertures throught blows upon the globe, or, es by increasing the size of thenentral pipe'.

In making meters for a very large number of lights two or several balances may be nsed, each similar to those above dcribed, and rendered uni form in their action bywheelwork or otherwise. In this case the number ofjets of cold and hot gasshould be increased in the same proportion. n

New that I have described a meter for meat nring the gas consumed by veor a larger number of lights and have furnished drnw ings giving an exact representation of it, I i

wish it to be clmriy understood that Ido not mean to restrict myself to the precise form o( the di'erent parts as described herein; but

I claim exclusively- The instrument or combination above described for measuring ges, composed of one or more balances formed ol' one pair or several pairs of globular or othcrshaped venais, eed

pair heilig united by a tube and `partly llled with alcohol or any other linid whidl bollsst a low temperature and submittedtotheedion of jets of gas at different temperatures, this gas being heated before it arrives` et the m# sel containing the said balances by n liaise of gas or any other convenient means.

SAMUEL CLEGG. i.

Witnesses:

WALT. HUGHES, y Solicitor, 144 Lmdenoall Street, 1Mo.

WM. J is. SKINNER, Clerk to Messrs. Kcarscy,.1[ughce it Thomas, 144i Leadcnhall Street.

hielt the l 

